People with autistic disorders need to be provided with skill training to get gainful employment besides being treated with empathy, feel many domain experts.
Globally, the prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders is rising, with autism affecting one in 100 children according to WHO, psychotherapist Minu Budhia said.
“The focus should be on skill building in a sensory-friendly environment with social communication training. Organisations need to create an inclusive autism-friendly workspace,” Budhia said.
Conditions such as ADHD (Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder), intellectual disabilities and learning disorders also impact millions, making neurodiversity far more common than we realise, Budhia said.
Individuals on the autism spectrum do not need pity, she said, adding, “They need our understanding. Empathy to my mind means seeing their strengths, celebrating their abilities, and providing the right support to help the neurodiverse to thrive in a neurotypical world”.
Budhia, founder of Carring Minds International also said that as a mother to a special child, she witnessed the power of empathy firsthand. “Empathy fuels attitudinal shifts. When teachers, educational institutes, employers and society keep an open mind, individuals with autism can lead fulfilling lives on their terms,” she said.
According to rehabilitation psychologist Amrita Panda, people living with autistic spectrum disorder should be imparted with vocational skill training to get gainful employment.
“These people should be treated with empathy and not sympathy”, she said.
Deepranjani Foundation, founded by Panda to empower adolescents and adults with cognitive or behavioural disorders, has identified five areas for skill training and subsequently provides employment.
“The five areas where skill training is given to autistic persons are multimedia, bakery, spice making, handicrafts and tailoring,” Panda said.
She said that the foundation secures orders from companies in these five areas which are then produced in the units manned by autistic adolescents and adults.
A part of the proceeds, which arise from the order supplies, are then distributed as salaries along with statutory benefits like PF and ESI.
According to Budhia, parents and educators miss early signs due to lack of awareness.
Panda said to spread the perception about such cognitive and behavioural disorders on the occasion of World Autism Awareness Day which falls on Wednesday (April 2), the foundation has tied up with Vaishali Skill Development Centre, a Section 8 company not-for-profit, to enhance skilling opportunities and employability training.
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